Digimon: Cyber Wars

Can also be found on my Fanfic.Net, but I wanted to post it here, too.

Prologue: Of Things to Come

Thick, dark storm clouds churned in the distance, turning the sky in the horizon black. Even from her vantage point atop the dilapidated building, everything below was drowned in a hazy darkness that swirled a deep grey. There were few people walking the streets as the day faded into dusk. From her perch, every human looked to be mere shadows trudging through the mist. Squinting her emerald eyes, she surveyed the citizens, crouching down and placing a hand on the rooftop to steady herself. How pitiful they were, going on with their lives as if the coming days were like any other. They were unaware of the plans that had been set into motion for their world and the world that reflected it. The edge of her mouth twisted upwards into a smirk. Their ignorance would cost them greatly, and they deserved their painful ends. Images of fear and death played through her mind, causing a quiet laugh to burst from her mouth. No matter what the future for these people would be, it would be amusing.

Soft footsteps, barely audible, caught her attention. Turning slowly, hood sliding down to cause her pale blonde hair to slide into her face, she looked. The cloaked figure paused, barely tilting its head enough to face the coming storm. The girl sneered, standing.

“The start is going smoothly,” she answered, placing a hand on her hip. “Soon, the Master will control both worlds.”

~

“These are the chosen Digimon?” A voice hissed, drawing the attention of two others. “How can they stop what has been put into motion?”

“Looks deceive,” another muttered, folding his arms. The white metal reflected the little light that was in the room, though the shadows hid the rest of his body. “All of them hold a potential very few others have.”

“One is a Virus type.” The first voice sounded displeased. Despite the pink helm she wore, it was obvious she was angry with the decision. “He can’t be trusted.”

“This one is different,” a third voice objected. “He fights to protect his friends, not to hurt others.”

“All Virus types turn their backs on friendship.”

“Crusadermon.”

She snarled, turning to glare at the white armored knight across from her. “You would believe this Virus could be different, Gallantmon?”

“Yes, I do,” Gallantmon replied, staring at the orb floating in front of the group. “Just as Magnamon said, he is different.”

The gold and blue knight shifted, glancing between the two before ultimately resting his eyes on the scene playing. “I know your views on Virus Digimon, Crusadermon, but we have to believe in them. What else do we have, if not this hope?”

“Magnamon is right,” Gallantmon murmured in agreement.

The pink armored warrior turning away, letting out a ragged sigh. “Let us hope you are right, for they hold the future of the Digital World on their hands.”

Magnamon smirked, placing his hands on his hips. “I believe they can succeed.”

Afternoon came in a gust of cheering and a chorus of excited cries as students welcomed the open air, running out of the school building with friends, laughing and joking with each other as they began to enjoy their newfound freedom. Mikami stood at the bottom of the steps, casually leaning against the stone wall lining the entrance stairs as others walked past. She wore a white and red mini-vest that was unzipped, revealing the tight black undershirt she wore under it, with matching black-striped red shorts and black shoes. Bookbag dangling in one hand, cell phone in the other, she looked to be waiting patiently. Of course, she was. Her friends had come to an agreement to meet outside the school at the end of the day to make plans for summer break. It was an important time for them, as oldest of their group, Daiki, would be graduating the next year. All of them planned to make it a summer to remember. It was their own of saying farewell for however long it took him to graduate college.

"Mikami!"

Turning, the brunette glanced over her shoulder. Yoko hopped down the stairs, cherry red hair framing her face. Her green eyes instantly lit up at the sight of the other girl, a smile splitting her face in two. The thin white jacket she wore did little to hide the yellow tank top she wore. Her white skirt billowed outwards as she skipped the last two steps. How she managed to safely land while wearing white heeled shoes was beyond anyone's understanding, though the girl seemed unaffected by the near impossible thing she had done. She giggled, dusting off her skirt though there was an absence of any dirt on it.

Both girls looked up to see to Daiki walked down the steps with a grin. His own bookbag was slung over his bare shoulder, thumping against his back. His medium-length silver hair hung in his face, partially obscuring the view of his pale gold eyes. He was wearing a back sleeveless turtleneck and ripped black jeans stuffed into his leather boots. On his hands were long fingerless gloves that stretched up to end at his elbows. As he came to a stop by the duo, he looked down at them. Of the three, he was the tallest, standing over six feet tall.

Of course, Mikami was taller than Yoko by nearly half a foot, standing at five foot eleven inches. The shortest of the trio look up and smiled.

"Ah, they said they'd meet us at the park," he replied. "Speaking of missing people, where's the Munchkin?"

"Don't call him that!" Yoko protested. "Just because he's short doesn't mean you have to be mean!"

Daiki sighed and rolled his eyes at her complaint, but found it necessary to apologize. "Sorry. But…he is kinda short."

"I concur," Mikami stated, turning. "However, do refrain from calling him that. I would hate to see what happens to you."

She shot a deadly glare over her shoulder that froze both Daiki and Yoko in place. The fiery light in her eyes was enough to silence even the most outspoken person. Swallowing, Daiki nodded swiftly to make her cease the cold stare as Yoko shivered in fright. Satisfied, Mikami looked away and began to walk down the street. Realizing that they would ultimately be left behind, the duo glanced at each other and dashed after their friend, shouting at her to slow down and wait. In response, she walked faster, all the while laughing at their predicament.

After a while, she began to muse over how far back they were. It was taking the two much longer to catch up with Mikami than she thought they would. With Daiki's long legs and Yoko's hyperactiveness, she had figured they would be walking beside her before they were halfway to the park. When she glanced forward, she realized they were almost to the park. The familiar trees stabbed into the air from behind a brick wall. From where she was, she could see the entry arch. Pausing, she turned to look at her friends. Daiki was wincing, walking oddly as he rubbed his ribs. Yoko stuck her tongue out, pulling at her shirt with a sigh, having unbuttoned her jacket.

As they tiredly trudged towards her, she placed her hands on her hips and smiled.

"Sorry, walking too fast again," she apologized.

"Walking? More like full force running!" Daiki moaned, gasping. "Seriously, I pulled a muscle trying to catch up with you."

"And I'm all sweaty now," Yoko moaned.

She had been running? Sheepishly rubbing the back of her head, Mikami grinned, chuckling. "Didn't realize I was running. Sorry, again."

Daiki playfully pushed her, causing them both to smile. After a moment of the duo shoving eachother, Mikami cleared her throat and gestured to the park.

"Come on," she urged. "I won't run this time."

Yoko craned her neck upwards to exchange a brief glance with Daiki, both debating whether to believe her. After a moment, they nodded. Mikami grinned and grabbed Yoko's hand as she began to walk. Daiki folded his arms behind his head as he followed them, whistling a small tune that made the girls bob their heads back and forth.

"By the way, while it's just us three," Mikami said, frowning, "there's something I've been meaning to ask, Daiki."

The boy blinked, grunting, "Hmm?"

"Why are you cheerful only around Yoko and me?" She asked, looking back at him. "Not that I don't mind, but…you're an ass to everyone else, even our friends."

Instead of being insulted, or lashing out as she expected him to do, he simply stared at her before nonchalantly shrugging. He acted as if it was a normal thing, instead of being incredibly odd for a teen his age to do. "To be honest, I have no idea. Guess you two bring out the soft side in me. I kinda like it though. It's hard to be nice to anyone else, but it's easy with you two."

"You do act like Yoko is a sister to you," Mikami mumbled thoughtfully.

"And I know why you treat Mikami-"

Before Yoko could finish the sentence, Daiki lunged forward, lowering his arms to wrap his hands around her mouth and silence her. Mikami jumped, letting go of Yoko and partially glaring at the eighteen year-old. Frowning, she folded her arms, stopped walking, and moved to stand in front of the muffled Yoko. Daiki looked at her with conflicted eyes, obviously going through an internal debate.

Yoko quickly nodded, sucking in a deep breath as he finally let go of her. Blushing furiously, he dashed around the two and took off for the park. Staring, Yoko blinked as Mikami slowly put two in two together. Blushing after cutting off Yoko, who was saying something about why he treated Mikami so nicely…His treating Yoko like a sister, but not her…

"Yeah," Yoko muttered, tilting her head to the side. "Why did he run away, though…?"

"I have no idea," Mikami mumbled, unsure. "Well, we should be going."

Yoko was silent, following after Mikami as the brunette crossed the street. Peering through the entry arch, she could see Daiki in the distance, sitting on the edge of one of the benches. On the other side was someone else, much smaller than the giant of a teenager was. As they neared the quiet duo, Mikami could see it was Judai. The youngest member of their group of misfits, he was also the shortest, causing him to have to look up to lock eyes with Yoko. His hair was dirty blonde and constantly messy, as he rarely brushed. He was wearing a loose fitting grey shirt mostly hidden by his black jacket, with a pair of matching grey shorts, and the brightest orange tennis shoes someone could ever see. His arms were draped over the back of the bench as he dozed. Daiki was glaring at him from the corner of his eye, though it failed to affect the napping boy.

Mikami sat down beside Daiki as soon as they neared them, stretching her arms around his shoulders, causing him to cough uncomfortably. Yoko took a seat between Judai and Mikami, shaking the still sleeping boy. After a few attempts, he groggily opened his eyes and grunted a sleepy greeting at the older kids.

"Didn't sleep last night, did you, Jay?" Yoko asked, giggling.

"Video games," he mumbled in reply, yawning.

"I keep telling you that if play video games all night, you'll fall asleep during the day," she reprimanded, shaking a finger at him. "You never listen."

"Better than school…"

"Jay, you need the education as much as the rest of us," Mikami stated, turning away from the flustered Daiki. "You can't buy video games without money. How do you plan on getting money without a good job? To get a good job, you have to at least graduate High School!"

"Point taken," he grumbled. "Can I get back to my nap?"

"No," Daiki interjected, "because this is a very serious issue. Plus, if you sleep now, you'll be awake all night and miss out on all the awesome adventures we're going on."

Daiki roughly slammed his palm against his face at the same time as Mikami, causing a slight echo, while Yoko let out a sigh. Of course the boy would immediately connect it to video games. Shifting, she shook her head and sighed again.

"What are we gonna do with you?" She muttered.

"Dunk him in the pond," Daiki grumbled.

"Hey!" Judai shouted indignantly.

"Boys," Mikami warned. "You're not five."

Daiki rolled his eyes and was about to retort when he stopped, looking over everyone's heads. Following his gaze, Mikami watched as two teens of the same height entered the park together. She couldn't help but grin.

It was the Duo of Disaster, twins Tadashi and Shizuka. Both were only a few inches shorter than Mikami, standing at the same height as eachother. Tadashi's hair was a dark blue that was cut short to his jaw line and properly brushed, giving him a neat appearance. His shirt and pants were both white with green, blue, and red splatters across them. He wore specially made tennis shoes with his own fan artwork of the Digimon show, displaying a snarling MetalGarurumon. Shizuka had dyed her hair to a light lilac, which was spiked up slightly to the right with the bangs swept out of her face, the rest tied up into a high ponytail. She wore a white shirt with a sideways black heart being stabbed with a red arrow. Her jeans were light blue and torn near the thighs and down around her ankles. Her tennis shoes were made by her brother, with an illustration of Omnimon. Slung on her back was her guitar.

"Hey!" Mikami shouted, raising a hand to wave at the twins.

Shizuka grinned widely, returning the wave enthusiastically while her brother barely raised a hand in greeting.

"Gang's all here, then," she said as she stopped in front of Mikami, smirking. "Good. Then we can talk plans."

"Do what you will, I plan on studying throughout vacation," Tadashi muttered, looking away. Shizuka slapped him on the back, earning a low, "Ow."

"Buzz kill," Daiki hissed in reply.

"Excuse me?" Tadashi asked in an insulted tone.

"You heard me, nerd."

"Delinquent!"

"Dweeb."

"You insolent, ignorant-"

Before Mikami could snap at the two males, Shizuka swung a fist, punching her brother in the face with enough force to send him toppling over while she kicked Daiki in the stomach, making the elder boy double over. Standing straight again, the girl promptly fixed her guitar strap and huffed loudly, an annoyed look on her face. Daiki, wincing, looked at her through one half-opened eye. Tadashi groaned in pain, clutching his face.

"Honestly, day after day with you two," she muttered, annoyed. "I'm glad I took it upon myself to learn Karate. It's the only way to make you quit."

Judai was staring with wide eyes, fully awake, as Yoko giggled. Mikami rubbed Daiki's back sympathetically; having been on the receiving end of one of Shizuka's kicks herself, she knew how much it could hurt. Though Shizuka was small framed, she packed a lot of power. Daiki turned and smiled at Mikami thankfully, rubbing his stomach with a grimace.

"Now, are you two done?" Shizuka questioned.

"Yes," both of them groaned.

"Okay. Now, onto business," she declared. "We never decided where we're going first for our vacation."

"Hawaii," Mikami offered.

"Alaska," Yoko muttered.

"No," Daiki replied with a frown. "Too cold."

"Tokyo would be nice," Judai stated. "There's all kinds of stuff over there dealing with video games."

"Absolutely not," Tadashi snapped, standing. "If we are to go on a vacation, we are going where we can enjoy ourselves away from most electronic devices."

"First sensible thing you've ever said," Daiki grumbled. "But I agree. I say we go to Hawaii. And then we can go to the Caribbean."

"Indeed," Tadashi agreed, nodding. "Is it settled then?"

While the others nodded, Judai muttered under his breath about going to Tokyo. Mikami laughed, patting him on the shoulder.

--------

Digital World - Forest Zone

"Come on, hurry up already! We ain't got all day for ya to be draggin' yer feet!"

He snapped at them with more anger than usual, mouth pulled into an angry sneer as his ears drooped. The purple Digimon was on edge, just like the rest of them, but even more so. What could he do, though? He was supposed to be leading these guys and he couldn't even properly protect them. How was he supposed to do anything relating to leading them? Why couldn't Renamon be their leader? Fox Face was far more level headed than he was, and definitely smarter than he was. No, she forced him to take charge of their group. Said fox Digimon was standing a ways away with Salamon, who looked on in concern. Looking at Gabumon, he sighed. There was no point in forcing him to help Biyomon walk and carry Dorumon at the same time, no matter how pissed off the imp was.

"Snapping at everyone does little to help," Renamon reminded him as he helped the limping bird.

"Shut up, Fox Face!" Impmon snarled. "I don't need advice from ya."

Renamon shrugged, folding her arms as Impmon assisted Biyomon in sitting down beside a tree. She leaned back and smiled gratefully, causing the imp to blush. He coughed and dashed over to help Gabumon, picking up Dorumon. The fur-draped reptile looked at him for a moment before trudging forward, trying his best to keep up with Impmon's pace. The Virus type was in one of his usual, often daily bad moods, and Gabumon knew better than to lag behind and make his friend mad. As they reached the others, the two set down the unconscious Digimon. Gabumon, sighing tiredly, tumbled to the ground beside Biyomon.

"If I have to keep carryin' all of ya, I just might quite all this dumb business," Impmon muttered, pacing back and forth. "Ain't no way we can keep on the run anyways."

Impmon winced, briefly closing his green eyes. Curse her and her ability to look cute even when she didn't mean to! She was always doing that, almost crying so that it made her eyes look glossy and making him feel bad for it. Looking her in the eyes was hard, but he did anyways and contemplated their choices. Fighting against an entire army and their allies was near impossible, but if they didn't, they'd just be deleted immediately anyways. Besides, he liked a good fight, and he wasn't going to back down to some stupid Digimon who thought they could rule the world, Demon Lord or not. Letting out a sigh, he huffed and turned away.

"Whatever," he grumbled; though the hopeful look on Salamon's face made him mentally smile. "I'm only doin' this 'cause of you guys."

Renamon made a soft 'hmph' noise that made him glare at her, eyeing the pleased look on her face. She knew he wouldn't just leave them because he actually did care, even if it was only a little bit. They all knew, actually. An odd sight they were, a bunch of normal Digimon running around with a Virus leader, but none of them actually cared what others thought. He didn't either. Just because he was a Virus type Digimon didn't mean that he couldn't care about these bozos. They had eachother and that was it. He kinda wanted to keep it that way.

"It's cute when you get flustered," Biyomon teased, smiling when he turned his glare at her. Unaffected, she sat up. "Trying to act like you don't care."

"Lie all you want, it won't change our opinion of you or how we see you," Salamon replied as she smiled.

Blushing furiously, Impmon stalked a couple feet away and firmly sat down, folding his arms and legs in protest. Renamon watched for a moment before laughing quietly and following after him. She slid down to sit beside him without glancing at him. He stared forward, tapping his fingers against his arm. They knew how to pull his strings, all right. So what if he cared about them? They didn't have to joke about it. They were just trying to make light of the situation, but they didn't have time for this. After a short rest, they'd have to be back on their feet and running. Their enemy wasn't far behind them.

"Concerned?" Renamon asked quietly, looking over her shoulder at the others.

Impmon did the same, feeling his heart drop into his stomach as his annoyance faded. Eyes on Dorumon, he grumbled, "Yeah. Not much I can do right now, though."

She placed a paw on his shoulder with a nod. "I know how you're feeling," she murmured, "but you're doing the best you can."

"My best ain't good enough," he muttered. "I mean, just look at poor Dorumon. He…It's my fault he's hurt in the first place."

"He was simply trying to protect a friend," Renamon replied, lowering her head slightly. She closed her eyes with a sigh. "Lamenting over it does nothing to help him."

"I-I know that, Fox Face!" He growled, drawing the attention of the others. "I know that doesn't help, but it's still my fault! We wouldn't be in this miss if it wasn't for me!"

He stared up at her while she narrowed her eyes at him. He knew what was coming next, wincing when she opened her mouth to berate him. When he heard nothing, he peeked to see what was going on. She was shaking her head, gripping her nose tightly in irritation. Uncoiling himself, he slowly stood, swallowing. She was right, as much as he hated admitting it. The stress was getting to his head. He just needed to clear his thoughts and get his act together. Ranting and raving wouldn't be of any help to anyone, so there wasn't a point in doing it.

He froze. Renamon's ears twitched as her gaze swiveled towards where the noise had come from. Dread settled on him like a blanket. The others were silent as they all strained to hear what the two were listening to. A loud crash echoed through the air as the ground began to rumble.

They had been found.

"Get up and run! Go! Salamon, take charge!"

Salamon looked startled but nodded, helping Biyomon to her feet. Gabumon slid Dorumon onto his back, holding the comatose Digimon carefully. After a moment, Salamon nodded and ran as fast as she dared with Biyomon by her side. Gabumon glanced over his shoulder at Impmon before dashing after the two females, struggling to keep his passenger on safely. Turning, Impmon looked at Renamon and frowned.

She shook her head defiantly, muscles tense. "You're not staying alone this time."

Impmon smirked, looking forward. "Thanks, Fox Face. Appreciate it."

The trees in front of them parted, falling to either side and slamming into the ground. Dust and dirt rose into the air in the form of a cloud as a massive Greymon loomed out of the shadows of the forest, roaring. Impmon sneered, gripping his fists tightly. The Greymon swung its head around, eyes locking onto the two Rookies. With unnatural speed, the massive Digimon swung its tail around to sweep the two off their feet. Renamon leaped into the air while Impmon dropped down, rolling underneath the heavy appendage. Stopping on his stomach, he pushed himself to his feet. The tail came around for a second swung, barely missing him as he jumped up.

"Diamond Storm!" Renamon shouted.

She flung her arms open as she said the attack name. Leaves gathered around her, sharpening and then raining down on the Greymon. The Champion simply looked up, the attack barely scratching it. It lashed out with its claws, catching Renamon and sending her crashing through a tree, causing it to snap in half as she disappeared. Impmon yelled out in concern, only to dig his feet into the ground and push backwards as a foot stomped into the ground where he had been moments ago. He looked up, furious, as he flicked his fingers upwards, fire gathering into small orbs above his fingertips.

"Bada Boom!" He yelled, throwing the fireballs. They bounced off harmlessly as he watched. "Damn it…!"

The tail smacked against him, slamming him into a nearby tree and pinning him. Grimacing in pain, he glared up at the tall Digimon. The Greymon roared, opening its mouth. Eyes wide, Impmon struggled to push the tail off to get out of the way of the coming attack. This can't be the end of me! What're the others gonna do without me? Frantic, he shoved forward with his hands, kicking the tail as hard as he could. He wasn't going to die here after getting so far! He didn't care what he had to do!

"Nova Blast!"

"Power Paw!"

Blinking, Impmon watched the blue and gold blur whack the Greymon's chin hard enough to make its head angle upwards. The massive fiery blast meant to kill Impmon set the treetops ablaze, causing an inferno that raged around them. Distracted, the Greymon loosened its grip on him enough for Impmon to wiggle out from tail. He dropped down and dashed forward, eyeing Renamon as she landed nearby. Glad that she was okay, he turned to the Champion and raised a fist.

"Thought ya could kill me that easily, eh? No way, bub!"

"Impmon," Renamon muttered.

Nodding, he threw up his hands, crying, "Pillars of Fire!" Flames shot upwards in columns, surrounding the Greymon and obscuring its view of them. Renamon seized hold of Impmon, causing him to yelp, and dashed farther into the trees, putting distance between them, the enemy, and their friends. Slung over her shoulder, he could see the Greymon stretched its head over the flames, but by the time it swung its gaze around, the trees hid them. She continued to run silently even when Impmon pounded on her back for her to stop.

"If ya keep goin'…we won't be able…to find our friends!"

"Be quiet," she grumbled. "I know that. Surviving is more important right now. They can take care of themselves until we can regroup."

Letting himself go limp, Impmon sighed. "I hope yer right, Fox Face."

"Are you doubting me now?" She asked.

He shook his head. "No, I ain't doubtin' ya…"

She nodded, paws barely making a sound as she rushed through the woods.

0-0-0

When Gabumon began to gasp for breath, Salamon called a halt, locating a small cave in a nearby cliff wall. While Biyomon and Gabumon nestled together, Salamon eyed Dorumon with a frown on her face. The furry Digimon mumbled something before blinking his eyes open to see her hovering over him. She let out a relieved sigh, gently pushing him up with his head. Once he was sitting up, he looked at the other two and glanced around, confused.

She wasn't sure if they were even still alive. A Champion had been after them, and even though they were together, two Rookies couldn't take on a Digimon that much stronger… How could she explain to him that their friends could have been deleted already? Shaking the negative thoughts out of her mind, she looked at Dorumon. No, she couldn't think that way. Impmon had put her in charge. If he trusted her with that responsibility, she trusted him and Renamon to live.

"Of course they are," Dorumon replied, smiling suddenly. "Impmon and Renamon make a great team. They can get out a pinch anytime."

"Yeah. Impmon might get into a bit of trouble, but Renamon's with him," Gabumon stated in agreement, nodding.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Salamon smiled. At least the two boys were being a bit more optimistic than her. She glanced over, catching Biyomon's eye. The pink bird smiled and nodded encouragingly. She could feel her spirits rise. As long as all of them had faith in their two friends, then Impmon and Renamon would be fine. After all, it was the only thing they could do to help at that point. She sat down beside Dorumon, looking at him and Gabumon. They were right, because Impmon and Renamon were an unstoppable duo. It didn't matter if it was a Champion they were up against, they'd just find a way to survive the battle. She knew that much. They just needed to hold onto their faith.

It was nearing dusk when the group settled back down near the playground. The sky was bursting with a rainbow of colors that bathed them in a soft, orange light. Everyone was sitting scattered, enjoying the peace. Shizuka absent-mindedly strummed her guitar while seated on the bench, humming a soft tune. Her brother sat nearby with his legs crossed, cheek resting in his palm while he watched her, a small smile on his face as he hummed along side her. Yoko and Judai had fallen asleep next to each other, backs leaning against the trunk of a tree; his head was on her shoulder while her head was nestled on top of his. Mikami was underneath the jungle gym, lying on her back with her arms behind her head. Daiki was nearby, one knee drawn up to his chest for him to rest his arm on as he vigilantly watched the others.

He’s always doing that, she thought to herself. No matter how much they annoy him.

“Hey,” Mikami called softly, “Daiki?”

Reluctantly tearing his gaze from the others, he glanced down at her. “Hmm?”

“Pretty sunset, isn’t it?” she murmured, closing her eyes. “Reminds me of when we were kids.”

He blushed, coughing into his fist. She giggled, opening her eyes again and sitting up. She sat with her legs out, hands gripping her feet.

“Remember when we first met here at the park?” She questioned, smiling. “I skinned my knee after falling out the swing. You came running over yelling and dragging your mom with you.”

Face red and burning with embarrassment, he turned away. “Yeah, well, you were bleeding…”

“It was small scratch,” she replied. “You were so worried…”

He rubbed the back of his neck, leaning to the side to look at her. “Okay, so I thought you were cute and needed help. Happy?”

She grinned victoriously, rocking back and forth as she looked forward. Tadashi was nodding off as Shizuka began to sing softly, playing a much gentler tune. “So I was right. When you ran off earlier, I kinda figured that’s what it was about.”

Now his ears were tinged a deep pink as he gaped. “W-what?” He stuttered.

“You like me,” she announced in a singsong voice, looking pleased with herself. “Can’t believe it took me this long to figure it out, but I know now.”

“You make it sound like it’s an accomplishment,” Daiki grumbled. Flinging himself backwards, he slammed into the ground with barely a blink. “I’m kinda glad you figured it out, though.”

“Kinda nervous,” he muttered, folding his arms over his chest. “You’ve never been the…nice type towards confessors of love.”

Confessors of love? Really? She blinked and sighed, reaching out a hand to slap on his forehead. “You’re ridiculous. I don’t have many friends, Daiki, but you’re one of them. That means taking care of eachother and having no secrets. That also means not making fun of eachother over something like that.”

“Why’s that?” He asked, pushing her hand off his head to grab it.

“Easy. Have you ever seen what happens to a friend who admits he loves one of his friends? Doesn’t turn out pretty. Sulking and all that.”

He nodded absent-mindedly, staring upwards. Mulling over something, he slowly sat up, a thoughtful look on his face.

“You know, we should camp out tonight.”

She looked at him, raising an eyebrow at the statement. He was probably uncomfortable with the earlier conversation. Nodding, she stood. “We should. I’ll go tell the others and call everyone’s parents.”

“Nah, I’ll call,” he replied, jumping to his feet. “Go wake up everyone.”

Smiling, she ducked down and walked out from under the jungle gym, heading towards where Shizuka sat. The purple-haired girl was still playing her guitar, her brother sleeping against her side. She looked up when the brunette approached, sparing an exasperated glance at her brother. Smiling, Mikami gently shook Tadashi awake. When he groggily blinked his eyes open, she looked at the guitarist.

Tadashi grumbled under his breath as he slid off the bench. Once on the ground, he laid down on his side and was immediately asleep. The girls giggled before Mikami looked over to the two youngest members of their group. Nodding to Shizuka, she made her away over to the resting teenagers and crouched. Tapping Yoko on the head caused the girl to open one eyes and look at the brunette with a questioning gaze. Judai stirred, mumbling incoherently.

“Hey, we’re camping out. Okay?”

“Camping out sounds fun,” Yoko whispered.

“Sleep,” Judai groaned, waving away Mikami.

She smirked, standing up and walking over to Daiki. He was whispering into his phone, rolling his eyes when an agitated voice replied back. Slowing down once in range of him, she strained her ears to hear what was going on. The voice belonged to Yoko’s father, who was complaining with rather colorful language that he didn’t want Daiki near his daughter. Sighing, Mikami snatched the phone from Daiki’s hand.

“Mr. Damoto,” she greeted, sticking a fake happy tone into her voice. “Everyone is here, I promise you. We’ve simply decided to camp out for the night because everyone is tired. Okay, yeah. Thank you. I’ll keep on eye on them for you, I promise. Bye.”

She hit the button to end the call with an irritated look on her face. “Honestly, that man. I could skin him.”

“I finished talking to all the other parents already,” Daiki said as she tossed him the phone. He caught it. “As soon as I said we were camping out here, they just agreed as long as I kept an eye out.”

“Yoko’s father is the only one who doesn’t trust you,” Mikami grumbled, kicking a rock. “It’s ridiculous.”

“Trust me, I know how you…”

He trailed off, staring upwards. Realizing that something caught his attention, she looked up. Above them, ribbons of light danced around, illuminating everything around them. The added light caused the others to reawaken, mouths agape as they stared at the sky. Daiki took a few steps forward, squinting.

Yoko stood, dragging a still half-asleep Judai with her to stand near the twins. Daiki made his way over, followed by Mikami. Shizuka, rubbing her chin, look like she was contemplating the phenomenon.

“He’s right,” she said. “There shouldn’t be an aurora directly over us.”

“So we’re witnessing the improbable,” Daiki stated with a heavy frown. “Err, does anyone else see that hole in the center of the aurora?”

Peering closely, Mikami realized that there was something that almost looked like a hole at the center. The color was being sucked upwards through it, swirling around the sides on in the inside of it. In fact, it reminded her of a black hole almost. However, it definitely wasn’t, considering the vibrant colors in it. Tadashi’s jaw practically hit in the ground as he stood, eyeing it with curiosity and fear.

“That…is unbelievable. How can this be occurring?”

As she thought about a response to the question, she felt a feeling of weightlessness sweep over her. Looking down, she found herself floating off the ground. Frantic, she turned to Daiki, only to see him flailing as he was picked up. The others followed suit, letting out cries as they were pulled upwards. Daiki reached over, grabbing her by the arm. The only thing she could think was that they were in serious trouble.

“Keep hold of eachother,” Daiki commanded.

The twins nodded, grabbing hands and then reaching out to hold onto Yoko and Judai. As Mikami reached to take Yoko’s hand, she felt her and Daiki being swept upwards over the others. Shizuka shouted in agitation while Yoko cried out in surprise. Realizing that they had been separated from their friends, Daiki held tightly onto her.

The world disappeared in a swirling mass of colors. The last thing she saw was Yoko trying to reach for her.

~

Digital World - Forest Zone Lake

Impmon impatiently paced back and forth at the edge of the lake, glancing up once and again to see if his companion was done. Of course, Renamon was still trying to get the mud and dirt out of her fur. Sighing, he turned around and stomped. After their narrow escape, they had rested awhile before coming to the lake. She had insisted on cleaning herself, and while he couldn’t blame her, he was still restless. They needed to get a move on soon, or else that blockhead Greymon would find them again.

And next time I fight that guy, I’m gonna Bada Boom him back to where he came from!

He stepped down, glowering, when he heard a head-splitting scream. Tensing, he looked up at the same time as Renamon. A massive hole had appeared in the sky, spitting out two shapes before it suddenly winked out of existence. One was flailing their arms while the other held on protectively. Renamon seemed to register that they were heading straight towards the lake and swam back, climbing onto dry land.

While the Digimon were staring on, Daiki had gripped Mikami closer to him, trying to stop her from flailing. It was even worse for her considering her fear of falling. Currently, she was screaming, eyeing the lake below with the thought that she was going to drown because she was a terrible swimmer. In only a few moments, they were in the water, causing a wave as they slammed into the lake. Mikami’s mouth opened instantly, flooding her lungs. Daiki swam down faster than a missile, grabbed her by the arms, and began his swim up. As soon as he head broke water, he dragged Mikami up, trying to keep her head out of the water.

“What’re you waiting for, Fox Face? Go help!” Impmon snapped.

Renamon nodded, diving into the water and swimming over to Daiki. He didn’t even blink when the bipedal fox said something to him and positioned herself on Mikami’s other side. Compared to being sucked into a massive hole in the side, a talking humanoid animal wasn’t that weird.

The duo dragged the unconscious girl onto dry land. As soon as he slammed a hand against her back, her eyes snapped open and she began to cough up the water she had inhaled. Daiki let himself fall over, groaning. Mikami, holding herself up weakly, looked at him gratefully.

“Never again,” he shouted at the sky. “I never want to fall through a hole in the sky ever again!”

Renamon nodded, shaking slightly as she dried off. “My pleasure.” Pausing, she noted they fact they look partially relaxed despite their situation. “You two don’t seem to be surprised by our ability to talk.”

Mikami shrugged. “We were sucked up into a hole in the sky and spit back out. Talking animals isn’t the least of my worries today.”

“Hey, we’re not talking animals,” Impmon objected. “We’re Digimon.”

For a moment, the two humans stared, and then exchanged looks. They were contemplating the situation, trying to decide whether or not they believed the strange creatures. After a moment, Mikami looked back at the waiting duo and nodded. Daiki leaned back while she flipped around to sit and folded her legs, staring at the lake.

“If you say so,” she replied. “Anyways, do you know why we’re here?”

Impmon shrugged. “Heck if I know, Toots.”

Mikami let out a heavy sigh, pouting. “Great. This is just great. Our camp out is ruined. Heck, it’s almost night time here too.”

“Mikami, you may want to look at this…”

Looking over, the girl could see Daiki holding something in his hand. She scooted closer and peered at what he was examining. It almost looked like a phone, but it was slightly small and much thinner. A screen took up most of it, while three buttons were positioned on the bottom. It was a light, dusty gold color. Blinking, she dug into her vest pocket. Feeling something metallic, she pulled it out. It looked similar to the one Daiki was holding, but was purple instead.

Impmon and Renamon were staring at them when the girl glanced at them. Looking at the odd device, she frowned.

“A Digivice,” Impmon muttered. “Woah. Haven’t heard of one of those being around in a long time.”

“Indeed,” Renamon grunted. “They must be the humans that were chosen.”

“Come again?” Daiki frowned. “Chosen?”

“To save the Digital World,” she stated calmly.

“Great, I have to be partner’s with one of ‘em?” Impmon hissed. “Nice.”

“Care to elaborate?” Mikami requested. “Because I am confused.”

~

Yoko screamed.

She wasn’t the only one. Tadashi was screeching like a banshee, flinging his free arm around. Judai wasn’t faring much better, barely holding onto Yoko’s hand. Shizuka was rather calm, holding tightly onto her brother and Yoko while trying to draw them closer. They were heading straight down towards a clearing in the massive forest below, which she knew would hurt when they landed. How the female twin could be so calm while they were plummeting to their doom was mind boggling, but at that moment, she didn’t care. They were going to be squished.

Then, suddenly, an orange blur charged at them from the corner of her eye.

An arm wrapped around her leg, a hand holding her ankle. She looked up, surprised to see a tall, orange furred humanoid holding onto her friends. One arm was wrapped around Shizuka, who had a death grip on Yoko. Judai had been carelessly flung onto the person’s shoulder, wide eyed, while Tadashi was tucked under the other arm. She nearly had a heart attack when they slammed against land. Shizuka lost her grip, causing the young girl to land harshly on her rear end. The others were deposited near her, rubbing various body parts.

Mikami and Daiki were nowhere in sight.

Looking up their rescuer, she found herself face to face with a bipedal lion. He stared down at them with a relieved look, one hand on the hilt on his sword. He looked heroic, she realized, his mane fluttering in the breeze, the last fading light making it easy to see his well-toned muscles--

She mentally smacked herself to knock her out of making him a heroic idol.

“I am glad I came in time to help you,” he grunted. “I am Leomon.”

“U-uh, um.” Unable to think, Yoko stuttered. “T-thank you.”

“Wow, a real life Digimon!” Shizuka exclaimed, jumping to her feet. “This is awesome! I can’t believe this! I only ever saw Digimon on TV, but they’re real!”

She grabbed his hand, shaking it up and down quickly. He looked at her with an unsure look on his face. Yoko giggled, covering her mouth

“Highly improbable, but a specimen is standing before us,” Tadashi muttered, acting as if he hadn’t been screaming like a little girl a few minutes ago. “Interesting. It seems we have discovered the Digital World.”

Yoko blinked, standing and dusting herself off. Leomon did his best to ignore the statements by the twins and examined all of them critically.

“None of you are injured?” He questioned, concern in his voice.

“Nope,” Shizuka answered.

He nodded when a voice shouted, “Hey!” Turning their attention towards where the cliff sloped downwards, they could see four small shapes heading for them. One was flying, reaching them before the others. It was a pink bird that landed beside Leomon, looking up at him.

“Leomon! There you are! We could’ve used your help earlier,” she grumbled.

“Biyomon,” Leomon said in greeting. “I apologize. I was busy battling.”

“Oh.”

Three others soon joined them. Biyomon was quick to introduce them: The small dog-like Digimon was Salamon, who was currently leading them; the reptile was Gabumon, who was their look-out; and last was a purple Digimon named Dorumon. The little purple Digimon blushed when Yoko commented on him being cute, kicking at the dirt. Leomon seemed to notice something was off as he scanned them over. Frowning, he folded his arms.

“Where are Impmon and Renamon?”

The four exchanged glances before Salamon looked down. “They were protecting us from a Greymon. We had to run; Dorumon and Biyomon were hurt. So, we got separated…”

“I am sure they are fine,” Leomon replied, despite the look of worry on his face.

“Who are Impmon and Renamon?” Yoko asked.

“Our friends,” Gabumon replied. “Impmon is our actual leader.”

“Ah, pardon me, children, but you have not introduced yourselves,” Leomon grunted, trying to change the subject.

Blinking, Yoko blushed. “I’m Yoko. The twins are Tadashi and Shizuka. The one that’s asleep is Judai.”

Leomon nodded, somewhat surprised that the boy was aware of the fact. Yoko slipped her hand into her jacket pocket and pulled out a silver device that looked similar to a phone. The others did as well, Shizuka waking Judai from him to find his. Tadashi’s was an ocean blue. Shizuka, being the opposite, had fiery red. Judai’s was colored smoky grey.

“You, my friends, have been chosen to save the Digital World,” Leomon stated as they gaped. “And these four are your partner Digimon.”

Sitting in the tree house, the two little girls shifted around Digimon cards, talking and giggling to each other. Several of the cards were scattered around, the pile spreading as one of them would pick up a card and then promptly toss it down. After a moment, the girl with the pale blonde hair locked her eyes onto a card and picked it up. The blonde haired girl looked up with a smile, emerald eyes sparkling as she held up a single Digimon card. On it was an illustration of a small, bat-like creature with a devilish smirk. The brunette across from the other child blinked, holding a card in her own hand. Examining the one her friend held, she blinked once again and tilted her head to the side, hair spilling over her shoulders to partially obscure her face. The blonde haired girl grinned, flipping her own hair out of her sight.

“DemiDevimon,” she announced. “My favorite card.”

“You like a little demon bat?”

She puffed her cheeks out as they turned a crimson red. “W-well, let’s see what Digimon you like then, Mikami!”

Giggling quietly, Mikami flipped over her card. The illustration was of a child-like imp wearing a scarf, gloves, and had a smiley face on its stomach. It was grinning evilly. “Impmon.”

A few moments of silence followed before her friend burst out laughing, falling backwards while clutching her stomach. She kicked her legs, trying to contain herself. Mikami looked crestfallen, slouching as she pouted while staring at her friend with sad sapphire eyes. When the offending girl looked up, she paused, laughter dying down. With an apologetic look, she sat up, rubbing the back of her neck.

“Ah, okay, sorry. It’s really not as bad as DemiDevimon.”

Mikami locked her eyes onto her friend, blinking. “Really, Angela?”

Angela nodded, giving the younger girl a thumbs-up. “Yep, really. DemiDevimon is basically a demon. An imp isn’t that bad. How about, since I laughed at you, you keep the card?”

Eyes sparkling, Mikami clutched the card to her chest and beamed at her friend. “Thanks!”

0-0-0

The fire crackled dully her in ears as she was pulled from her dream. Sleepily blinking her eyes open, Mikami sat up, rubbing her head with an irritated sigh. That had been the first time she had dreamt about her former friend Angela since their falling-out. They had been close as children, both fans of Digimon, but after the “incident” had occurred, they had grown apart. At some point, Mikami decided Digimon had been too childish for her. After a harsh argument with the older girl, they went their separate ways.

Mikami couldn’t help but realize the irony in it all, as her eyes rested on the sleeping form of Renamon. Who would have thought that she would end up in the Digital World, partnered with the Digimon she once called her favorite? She had dreamed of meeting real Digimon when she was younger, and now, several years later, she got her chance. Nothing was the same, though. She and Angela had wanted to go together, but of course, the older girl was gone and out of her life.

Letting out a soft sigh, she slid a leg under her to push herself to her feet. She yawned as she stretched, tears forming on the edge of her eyes. Annoyed, she rubbed them away and stumbled over to the lake. She carefully sat, kicking off her shoes to the side, and stuck her feet into the chilly lake. The icy feeling on her skin helped to distract her from the dream as she leaned back. A comforting silence followed as she closed her eyes, enjoying the slight breeze.

“Mind if I join ya?”

Surprised, she blinked, looking to her left. Impmon stood there, rubbing the back of his head while glancing away. After a moment of thought, Mikami nodded. He sat down beside her, staring at the starlight sky. She closed her eyes again, enjoying the warm night.

“Weird dream,” she replied. It wasn’t the complete truth, but she wasn’t lying either. “Just wanted to clear my head before I went back to sleep.”

“Ah.” He shifted uncomfortably, tugging at his scarf. “So, who are these friends you’re looking for?”

“Well, one’s a smartass named Tadashi,” she began, chuckling as she reopened her eyes. “He thinks he knows everything there is to know.”

Impmon frowned at her, already despising the description he was getting. “Sounds annoyin’.”

Mikami couldn’t help but laugh, nodding in agreement. “Trust me, he is. But at least his sister, Shizuka, is there to put him in line. Physically speaking, she’s the second strongest of our group. And it’s best not to piss her off.”

“I can imagine,” he grumbled, shivering.

“Then there’s Judai. He’s pretty lazy. In fact, his hobby is playing video games. Yoko is…well, she’s pretty happy-go-lucky and friendly. To be honest, she’s the nicest one of us.”

Impmon smirked, closing his eyes. “Ya guys are an odd bunch.”

She frowned, smacking him on the back of the head. “Judging from what you guys told me about your friends, you are too.”

He slapped her hand in return, only for her to smack him again. Sighing in defeat, he slouched. “I’m the weirdest one,” he grumbled. “I’m the only Virus Digimon out of us six.”

“How’d you meet them anyways?” She questioned, glancing at him. “Seems strange, now that I think about it.”

A faraway look appeared in his eyes as he eyed the lake, folding his arms. “Well…”

0-0-0

Stumbling over his own feet, the imp glanced over his shoulder, green eyes scanning the area behind him. Though there was no sign of the Digimon that had been pursing him, he knew better than to believe that the massive Digimon was gone. Looking forward, he sucked in a ragged breath and ran forward, feet barely staying in contact with the ground. The sooner he got out of there and found shelter, the better. He didn’t have it in him to run another day.

A roar ahead of him cut him off. Skidding to a halt, Impmon stared, glancing behind him for a moment. His eyes widened when the sides of the canyon crumbled, blocking him path. He locked his eyes forward as a stomp shook the ground. A massive, black shape rose from the dust cloud in front of him. A wild mane ruffled in the wind as crimson eyes locked onto him. Slowly stepping backwards, Impmon shivered when the hulking form of a lion blotted out the light. The massive lion Digimon’s dark form seemed to swallow all the light coming from behind, casting Impmon in a dark shadow.

“So this is where you ran to,” the Digimon growled, stomping forward.

“What do ya want with me?” Impmon demanded, back slamming into the rock pile. Frantic, he gripped a rock in one of his hands. “Why are ya chasin’ me?”

“I have orders to take you,” his opponent growled, pointing a poisoned red claw at him. “And I will take you.”

“Diamond Storm!”

Impmon jumped when the voice rang out. As he watched, a golden fox jumped into the air, flinging her arms open to release the attack. The massive Digimon swung around to swat her away, but she disappeared. A few moments later, a purple furred Digimon appeared in between him and Impmon.

“Metal Cannon!”

Metal orbs shot out of the Digimon’s mouth, hitting MadLeomon in the side of the face. Swinging around, the dark lion roared. The little Digimon simply smiled, not at all intimidated, as an orange blur slammed into the ground in front of him. Impmon gaped as he realized it was a Leomon. The lion pulled back a fist, eyes blazing with anger at his dark, undead counterpart.

Leomon swung his fist forward, causing energy to burst outwards in the form of a lion head. It slammed into MadLeomon, sending him crashing backwards. He began to fade immediately, Leomon absorbing his data with a frown. The fox Digimon appeared beside Impmon, arms folded, as the purple Digimon trotted forward, tail twitching back and forth. After a moment, Leomon spun and approached Impmon, kneeling.

“Uh…thanks?” Impmon muttered.

Leomon nodded. “You are uninjured?” When the imp muttered a positive answer, he smiled. “That is good. We came in time.”

Impmon glanced at the other two Digimon, blinking. “So, uh…who’re ya guys?”

Renamon stepped forward to intercept him. “You cannot. As Leomon mentioned, you are also one of the Chosen. You must come with us.”

0-0-0

Yoko stared out at the dark night, sitting at the mouth of the cave while she eyed the blue moon that was disappearing on the horizon. Leomon rested beside her, arms and legs folded while he quietly dozed. He had been awake for most of the night, so upon waking, Yoko decided to relieve him. Though it took a few good minutes of arguing, she had gotten him to agree with her. It had mostly been due to the point she made about the ineffectiveness of a tired guardian. She glanced at him for a moment, making sure he was asleep, before watching as Salamon trotted forward. The small puppy Digimon settled into Yoko’s lap with a small smile and a yawn, closing her eyes and snuggling up to the human. Yoko smiled, rubbing her new friend’s head. The Digimon briefly opened a single eye to look at her partner, then shut it again, deciding that it was okay to rest.

Silently, Yoko wished Mikami and Daiki were there with them. Shizuka was strong, but without their leader, it wasn’t the same. Mikami had always been the glue that kept them together, just like how they helped her to recover from her past. After so many years of being together, being separated they way they were felt like their group had been torn apart. After all, the group had been friends for nearly a decade now-- not counting Judai, who they befriended a few years ago.

“Do not worry yourself.”

Yoko, surprised, glanced at Leomon. He was fully awake, smiling gently at her. “I do apologize, but I did get some sleep thanks to you.” He shifted, sliding closer to her and placing a paw on her shoulder. “Your friends are fine, I assure you. They are with Impmon and Renamon. That much I am sure.”

“How can you be so sure?” Yoko asked.

“You landed near us,” Salamon spoke up, head still resting on Yoko’s thigh. “Most likely they landed near Impmon and Renamon.”

Smiling, Yoko stated, “I’m more worried about what Daiki will do to anyone who hurts Mikami.”

Leomon chuckled softly as she glanced forward. The sun had just begun to rise, lighting the sky and dismissing the stars. The lion pushed himself to his feet with a grunt, striding farther into the cave to wake the others. Yoko turned around to watch him as he woke the others, humans and Digimon together. Judai, yawning, stood and walked over. Tadashi was stumbling as he made his way forward, and Shizuka looked annoyed, rubbing at her eyes. The Digimon fared better, stretching out their muscles with a varying degree of alertness in their eyes. Yoko smiled at Shizuka as the older girl sat beside her, legs and arms crossed. Tadashi and Judai settled against the cave wall, already beginning to doze off again. Leomon took a few steps forward to position himself outside, scanning for possible opponents.

“Not much is known about the Digimon we are opposing,” Leomon replied in answer, pausing. “The enemy forces refer to this Digimon as the Master. The Master has an extensive army, though most are Champion level. Very few have surpassed Champion to become Ultimate, and so far there are no Mega level Digimon in the Master’s army. Most Mega level Digimon in the world were captured or reformatted. None served or now serve the Master, as far as I know.”

“Indeed,” Tadashi agreed, yawning. “We can only combat this threat as a whole team.”

“Depending on where they are,” Biyomon began, contemplating, “then they could either head for the Village of Beginnings or Root Village.”

“With the direction they were heading, I’d say Root Village,” Salamon muttered. “But they know we’re closer to the Village of Beginnings, so it’s more likely they’ll be heading this way. In any case, it’s best if we head there instead of Root Village. It was our intended destination, after all.”

“Salamon is correct,” Leomon stated, leaning against the cave entrance. “It is safer for us if we head northward to the Village of Beginnings. Rumor travels fast through there. If anyone has seen the others, we will hear it there.”

“Shizuka?” Yoko whispered, looking at the older girl.

Shizuka tapped her finger against her lips with a thoughtful look, obviously debating over the conversation. After a moment, she stood, hands on her hips, and looked around at the others.

“I agree with Leomon. Village of Beginnings definitely sounds like our best option at this point.” She paused, glaring at the two male humans. “If no one has objections.”

Judai shrugged casually while Tadashi shook his head, obviously not wanting an argument.

“Okay. It’s decided then. We’re off to the Village of Beginnings!” She paused as her stomach rumble. She smiled sheepishly. “Food first though, ‘kay?”

0-0-0

The sun seemed to rise quickly as Mikami yawned, sitting up. The makeshift camp they had created was nearly invisible. As she watched, Daiki poured water over the smoldering remains of the fire. A waft of steam drifted upwards for a few moments before disappearing completely. The boy glanced at her briefly, raising an eyebrow as he motioned for her to get up. She groaned, standing, and rubbed at her eyes. Renamon approached them from the side, Impmon with her, and frowned.

“We will need to leave quickly,” she stated. “It seems patrols have been through here. We are lucky they did not see the fire.”